Road-scraper



(No Model.) v

J. D. SMITH & P. M. STRONG.

Road Scraper.

No. 242,066. Patented May 24,1881.

N. PETERS. MW. Wad-him. 0.0,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

' JOHN D. SMITH AND FRANCIS M. STRONG, OF VERGENNES, VERMONT.

ROAD-SCRAPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 242,066, dated May 24. 1851.

Application filed January 3, 1881. (No model.)

-To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN D. SMITH and invented new and useful. Improvements in.

Road-Scrapers; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full and complete description of the same;

Road-scrapers of this class consist, in general term s, of a scraper the face of which is substantially vertical, set diagonally on a draftframe, and drawn along the side of the road, so that the earth scraped up or gathered by the advancing scraper will be caused, by the position of the scraper, diagonal to the line of advance, to move along the scraper and escape from the end of the same toward the middle of the road, and the practical difliculty encountered in the use of these scrapers is the constant tendency to swing around transverse to the road in consequence of the slipping resistance to the advance of the diagonal scraper.

The object of this invention is to counteract this slipping resistance and keep the apparatus in proper working position asit advances. This is accomplished by several instrumentalities, which will be named and afterward particularly described.

First. The draft-frame is made very long, so that a comparatively small weight will, by the increased leverage due to the length of the frame, have increased power to resist side strain.

Second. A cutting-blade is applied at the extreme rear end of the frame to penetrate the soil as the machine advances and resist side strain. Said cutting-blade may he in the formof a sharp-edged wheel or a sliding blade.

Third. The draft tongue attached to the front end of the frame may be adjusted to be slightly oblique to the line of advance, so as to counteract at the front in some degree the slipping resistance against the scraper.

Machines of this class are subjected to exceptionally hard usage and rough handling,

. A and every point of construction which presents Having now set forth in general terms the nature of theilivention, its several parts will be more particularly described, having reference to the accompanying drawings,wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view of the machine in working position. Fig. 2 is a plan of our machine.

same.

A is the draft-frame, composed of two parallel girts framed properly with cross -pieces and a covering of plank. This frame is twelve or fourteen feet in length.

Diagonally across the front end of the frame A there is a strong plank faced with iron and composing the scraper B. It is securely bolted to the frame A and adequately braced. The lower edge is armed with steel, and the upper edge curves over forward to prevent dirt or stones from climbing over and falling behind or upon the platform. The rearmost end of the scraper projects beyond the frame farther than the more forward end.

At the rear end of the frame A a seat, (3, may be placed for the driver, and under it the sharpedged wheel D is placed, its axle being mounted in bearing boxes secured to the girts. The weight of the driver causes the edge of the wheel D to penetrate the ground slightly, so as toofi'er apositive resistance to the side draft of the machine. If necessary, owing to the hardness of the soil, the axle of the wheel D may be set a little oblique to the line -of pro gression by adjusting one of its boxes forward or backward, as the case may require, so that as the machine advances the wheel will constantly tend to move the rear end of the frame A in a direction opposite to the side draft. Additional weighting, by stones, E, &c., may be placed on the frame A, if necessary.

A blade, F, may be substituted for the wheel D without change of efi'ect upon the operation of the machine, and said blade may be preferable when a furrow has been plowed along the course of the outer edge of the course of the machine, as the blade will then run in the furrow and resist the side draft as the landside of a plow does.

If desirable or necessary on account of the friable nature of the ground, the wheel D and blade F may be employed together, the more effectually to resist side draft. Theblade F is Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the pivoted at its forward end and provided at its rear end with a clamping device, whereby it may be held up out of engagement with the ground, or maybe clamped in working; position. I

The draft-pole G is hinged to the front ends of the side girts, and may be set more or less oblique to the line of progression, so that the draft may, in some degree, counteract the slip' ping resistance of the scraper.

The lever-slides II II serve. to lift the scraper from the ground to clear any immovable obstacle it may encounter.

A plow or barrow may be employed in advance of the scraper to loosen the soil, if that be necessary.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new isl. A road-scraper constructed with a long platform draft-frame, A, adapted to be loaded with added weight, having a scraper, I3, secured diagonally across its front end, and its rear end provided with a blade, I which may be adjusted to penetrate the ground as it advances and resist side draft, as set forth.

2. A road-scraper, I3, rigidly secured diagonally across the front end of a platform or draft-frame, A, cotnbined with a sharp-edged supporting-wheel, I), at the rear end of said frame, to prevent side draft, as set forth, and a drivers seat placed over said wheel, whereby the same will be loaded by the drivers weight.

3. A roadscraper, B, rigidly secured diagonally across the front end of a platform or draft-frame, A, combined with sharp edged supportingwheel I) at the rear end of said frame, set slightly oblique to the line of progrcssion, and a supplemental blade, I so as to counteract the side draft.

4. A road-scraper, B, set diagonally across a draft frame, A, adapted to be loaded with added weight, combined with a sharp edged supportingwvheel, I), and drivers seat, at the rear end ofsaid draft-frame, and a draft-tongue,- (i, at the front end of said frame, set more or less oblique to the line of progression, to counteract side draft, as set forth.

5. A madscraper, I3, set diagonally across a draft frame, A, having a supportitrg -wheel at its rear end, combined with lever-slides II II, whereby the scraper B may be lifted from the ground when desired, as set forth.

JOHN l). SMITH. FRANCIS M. STRONG. Witnesses Geo. W. GRUNDEY, Geo. I 0. KIMBALL. 

